Serving up success on the national stage

St. Mary’s College in Crosby has reinforced its reputation as one of the country’s leading hotbeds of table tennis talent. Two teams and three individual students have reached the finals of a prestigious national competition.

The talented players will compete in the National Butterfly Schools Championship. The competition will take place in Wolverhampton at the end of April. It is one of the biggest events in the table tennis calendar.

Pupils beat off the challenge of schools across the North West at the recent regional final in Widnes. They are now in the last stage of the competition. The event organised by Table Tennis England. and sponsored by table manufacturer Butterfly.

The girls under 19 team have worked their way through to the final. Students within this team include Nyasha Roberts (Year 7) and Isabella Hamer (Lower Sixth). The girls, at the ages of just 12 and 16, were up against opponents much older than them.

Nyasha and Isabella, along with Priscilla Dix (Year 5 Preparatory), have also secured places in the national final of the individual competition. They achieved this success the previous weekend. This was the first time that St. Mary’s pupils have reached both individual and team finals in the same year.

Meanwhile, the school’s boys under 13 team are also heading to Wolverhampton. This is thanks to excellent performances against Altrincham Grammar, Manchester Grammar and Blue Coat School among others.

The team included Kaya Eryavuz (Year 8), twins Archie and William Green (Year 7), Thomas Locke (Year 7) and Deniz Berker (Year 6 Preparatory).

The only disappointment for St. Mary’s was that the regional finals clashed with a Preparatory School ski trip. This prevented some key members of the under 11 teams taking part.

As a result, some younger players stepped into the breach. Although they did not reach the finals, their determined and resilient performances indicated that the future of table tennis at St. Mary’s is in safe hands.

The school’s table tennis co-ordinator, Helen Savage, said she felt delighted with the results:

“We have never had so many pupils in the national finals, spread throughout the year groups, so we’re really thrilled.

“What they have achieved is a testament to their commitment to the sport, the fabulous support they have achieved from parents and the excellent coaching of Dave Graham who is also the Lancashire Coach.

“The future of table tennis at St. Mary’s is certainly bright, and we will be looking to build on this success in the years ahead.”